The Parent Trap
by tvdrain11
Summary: Parent Trap AU. All Human. KlausxCaroline
1. Chapter 1

_November, 1998_

_Caroline grabbed the largest suitcase she could find from her walk-in closet and started throwing random articles of clothing in it. With tears streaming uncontrollably down her face, she couldn't even see what she was shoving inside her luggage. It didn't matter. She would just ask Rebekah to come get the rest of her stuff. The only thing she needed to do right now was to get the hell out of the house. She zipped her suitcase and was about to turn around when someone hugged her from behind. _

"_Caroline please.. please, love.. don't do this." _

_She closed her eyes and willed herself not to scream. He can't just say things like that and call her "love" and expect things to be okay. To be fixed. No matter how hard they tried, some things are just beyond repair. _

"_Nik. Let me go." She shrugged Klaus' hands off of her and started dragging her suitcase out the closet._

"_Ca-caroline..please.." She finally turned to face Klaus and saw that he had tears in his eyes and his hair was a mess from the bean bag chair Caroline threw at him minutes ago. It would've been quite a hilarious sight if it wasn't so depressing at the same time. Caroline knew that if she stayed a little longer, if she allowed herself to be comforted, she would drop her suitcase and come running back to his arms. It's like an endless cycle, really._

_Niklaus and Caroline met at the Mystic Cruise when Caroline was having one of her 'soul-searching' moments and decided to take a cruise in Europe. It was kind of like a whirlwind romance. They got married four years ago after dating for only three months. The first few months of their marriage had been great. While Nik left Britain to be with Caroline, he had to keep flying back to London for his art business. When flying back and forth became too tedious even for Klaus, he decided to close his art business. Klaus tried to open a US branch but it didn't work out so he decided to teach art at Whitmore. Caroline was still in college so it wasn't like she could just leave. Nothing could beat the happiness Caroline felt when she found out that she was pregnant with day their twin boys were born was the best day of Caroline's life. Klaus was the perfect father to their sons. A year after the twins were born, Caroline noticed a few changes with Klaus. He started coming home late and more often that not, drunk. He was always complaining and blaming Caroline for numerous things. Caroline, in turn, started to resent Nik. They both focused on the kids and on their respective jobs just so they could avoid each other. They just kept fighting. Screaming and throwing of things were involved. It kept going like that until..until it stopped. They stopped fighting, but only because they stopped caring. She just couldn't see the Nik she fell in love with anymore. Just glimpses of him. And perhaps.. perhaps she too wasn't the Caroline he fell in love with four years ago. They just changed and drifted apart. It went on for a while and harsh words were exchanged. Caroline thought she could handle it.. Thought that she loved Klaus enough to bear it all. Until..well, until now. _

"_I just can't do this anymore, Nik." _

_Caroline noticed how Klaus' expression turned cold. "So that's it, then. You're leaving. After four years of being together."_

"_Maybe we rushed into this too soon. Maybe we were too young." Caroline knew it was too late to be saying these. It would've been easier if it were just them. The twins would be affected too. But Caroline would rather she and Klaus separate than have the twins grow up in a home with two parents constantly fighting and drifting apart. It would hurt them more in the future if they didn't end this now. "We go days and weeks without having a meaningful conversation. You don't tell me your problems and worries anymore. And to be honest..there are times when I don't want to hear it." Caroline noticed Klaus looking hurt but she had to tell him. She just had to. "Sometimes I just don't care enough anymore. And you don't too." _

_Caroline saw Klaus about to protest but she beat him to it. "Believe me, you don't. At this point we're just together for our sons. Can you honestly say that I'm still the Caroline you fell in love with?"_

_When Klaus said nothing for the longest time, Caroline knew the answer. _

"_Leave, then." Klaus said in that dead calm manner of his that Caroline secretly hated. He then turned to stare out the window. She preffered him screaming his head off at her than this. It was like he's giving up. Caroline internally shook her head. Isn't this what she wanted though? To finally end all this angst and just..leave? _

"_Okay." Caroline didn't know what else to say. There was no point in arguing anymore. They've already had this conversation before. She didn't want to dwell on her feelings now because she knows that if she starts she'll never stop and she'll never leave. Better stick to the technical stuff for now. "I'll call you once I settle a meeting with the lawyers. I'm taking the twins with me."_

_At that, Klaus turned around furiously. "You are NOT taking my sons away from me." _

_Klaus looked so vulnerable and scared right then and there that Caroline wanted to reach out to him but she willed herself to stay put._

"_For now. I meant for now. While things aren't settled yet. I'm not taking them away from you. You're still their father no matter what happens between us." Caroline tried to reassure him._

"_How are we going to work this out?" Klaus asked, his voice tired. Caroline never saw him look more defeated. _

"_I don't know, Nik. Just..wait for my call." Caroline said then grabbed her suitcase and started to walk out the door. _

"_Caroline." The tone in Klaus' voice made Caroline stop. "I'm sorry."_

"_Me too." She took one last look at Nik, then turned around and walked right out of the life she thought was hers forever. _

_She never looked back, and he never ran after her. _

_June, 2013_

_Mystic Falls, Virginia_

"Nathan Forbes, you've been in there for almost thirty minutes. Remember we still need to drop by the Grill before we leave. You don't wanna miss the plane, sweetie." Caroline said as she knocked in her son's bathroom door. She took a step back when it suddenly opened.

"Jeez mom, relax. We don't leave for another six hours, anyway." Nathan said as he moved past his mom to continue his last minute packing.

"Why aren't you packed yet, mister? I told you last night-"

Nathan grabbed his mom's shoulders. "Mom. Relax. The camp's not going anywhere. Okay?"

Caroline sighed, she knew that she was being more neurotic that usual, but she couldn't help it. She's going to be separated from her son for a month. She even booked herself a flight as well to drop him off despite her son's complaints that he can go there by himself. She had none of it though. Surely she can be excused for this behavior right?

_Meanwhile in London .._

"Aunt Bekah, please tell me why you allowed dad to ship me overseas?" Clayton Mikaelson asked as he was waiting for his plane to board. He was sitting with his Aunt Bekah while his dad was buying some coffee. He was here because his dad suddenly thought that sending him to a camp was a good learning experience or whatever.

"We've been over this." Klaus said as he sat down beside his son.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "If it were up to me, we'd be on a plane to Rome right now, just imagine all the shopping.. afternoons sipping lattes.."

"Ah, but it's not up to you is it?" Klaus teased his younger sister.

"Honestly Nik, why send the poor kid to a hideous camp when he can be enjoying his summer with me in Rome?"

"Its edu-"

"Educational, I know." Rebekah said and made a dying face at Clay. He laughed and tried to school his features when his dad made his 'don't start' face at him.

"It'll be over before you know it, and you'll meet a lot of people there. It'll be fun, I promise." Klaus reassured. Although Clay wasn't so sure. He was not comfortable meeting new people and being outside his comfort zone. But maybe its time to change that.

He sighed and sipped on his latte, waiting for the call for boarding. This was going to be a long month he could tell.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi! Thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites! :) really appreciate it! :) **

Clayton stared at the pile of bags in front of him, wondering how in the world he was going to grab his luggage now. Its been an hour since he's arrived at camp and after a long flight and another particularly long car ride to the camp, its safe to say that he's exhausted as fuck. Pardon his French.

After waiting a few minutes for the pile of bags to lessen, Clay finally saw the handle of his. He sighed with relief and went to grab the handle when suddenly another pile of suitcases were placed on top of the pile.

"Are you kidding me?!" Clay exclaimed. He was seriously contemplating just leaving his luggage there and coming back later.

He looked at his luggage under the pile and tried to find the best angle to haul it out. He grabbed the handle once again and tried to pull as hard as he can. He's probably not making a good impression on the strength department, is he? He released the handle and took a step back, suddenly bumping into someone.

"Need a hand?"

Clay turned and saw a guy around his age with the grayest pair of eyes he's seen. All thoughts about his luggage momentarily flew right out of his mind.

"That one yours?" They guy went on, oblivious to the tongue-tied state Clay found himself in. He pointed at the dark blue luggage peaking underneath the pile.

"Y-yeah." Bloody hell, he's started stuttering. Great. This is not a good sign.

The guy grabbed the handle and effortlessly pulled it out from the pile and dumped it on the ground with a satisfying thump which made Clay internally wince. He hoped none of his art materials got damaged.

"Thanks, uh..?"

"Hans. And you are?"

Clay couldn't help but laugh. Its just.. Frozen? He has this secret unhealthly obsession for Disney movies.

"Clayton. But most people call me Clay." He shrugged.

"And you sound.."

"British?" Clay supplied.

Hans laughed. "Finished my sentence right there."

"You mean sandwiches?" Clay asked, feeling bold all of the sudden.

Then he remembered who he was. If it was possible to feel secondhand embarrassment for onself, Clay was feeling it now.

"I mean, not sandwiches, obviously. There aren't any sandwiches around. But if there _are_ sandwiches I'd really like one cause I'm famished. But then again, I didn't really mean to say anything at all.." _Oh God shut up now, Clay. Just shut up. Your dork is showing. _

Hans didn't seem to mind though. He just laughed and shook his head. "Don't worry, I've been getting those a lot ever since that ice movie came out."

_Ice movie. _"You haven't seen it?"

"Nope. Not my thing." Hans shrugged. "So, what cabin you staying at?"

"Cabin B. You?"

Hans seemed to brighten up at that. "I'm staying in room 5, man! Guess we'll be cabin-mates then."

Clay nodded.

"Listen, I gotta go. But it was nice meeting you."

"Yeah, you too."

Hans' smile grew. "See you around, dude."

"Okay, see you bro."

_Bro? _Clay mentally face-palmed himself.

Hans waved then started to walk back towards the common area.

Clay tried to gather his wits. What was _with _him? Is it the new environment? He wasn't normally this flustered around others. Or at least that's what he thought. Well, at least he made one new friend. His dad would be proud.

So yeah,.. he kind of bats for the other team. No, make that really. Clay was pretty sure he was gay. And he was open about it. He still remembered the day when he told his dad.

_Clay held his breath. He didn't know how his father would react after finally telling the truth about his sexuality._

_To his utter surprise, his dad smiled in understanding and nodded."Okay."_

_Clay's eyes widened in shock. "Okay?"_

_His dad shrugged. "Yes." _

"_But..But I just told you I'm gay. How can you be so chill about it? Don't you care at all?"_

"_No. I mean, yes, I care about how you're feeling, of course. But if you're asking me about how I feel? Then no, it doesn't change anything. And no, I wouldn't change anything about you. You're still you. My son, Clay."_

Clay hugged his dad after that and even shed a few tears, a fact that he made his dad swear not to tell anyone. He wasn't ashamed of who he is, never felt the need to hide. But at the same time, he was still wary of how his family would react to it. But his dad was there to reassure him about all his worries. After that, he then told his Aunt Bekah, who was like a mother to him. She straight up told him that she knew all along and that she was grateful that he finally told her because did he want to introduce his boyfriend to her? Yeah, he really wanted her to meet his nonexistent boyfriend. But it was nice that his family knew and accepted him.

He started walking towards his room. Thank God they didn't have to share rooms. Clay was used to having his own space. The cabins were more like cottages with five rooms and a living area for people to hang out. He put his key on the lock of room 3 and was greeted with a cloud of dust. The walls of his room were dark blue. There was a single bed with dark blue sheets that matched the walls, a closet, a study table and wide windows. Clay dropped his suitcase close to the closet and fell face down on the bed. He was dead tired and unpacking would just have to wait.

xxxxxxxxx

"Nathan Forbes." Nathan supplied his name at the front desk. He's been here for 40 minutes and he hasn't even checked in yet. In fact, he's just managed to make his mom leave. She insisted that they eat first at a nearby restaurant but he knew better. She'd miss him too much. He didn't blame her though, this was the first time he'd be away from his mom for a long period of time but he wasn't a child anymore.

The facilitator looked up and did a double take. "Didn't I check you in an hour ago?"

Nathan shook his head, confused. "No, I just got here."

"Huh." She said as she checked the list in front of her. "What's your name, again?"

"Nathan Forbes."

"Oh, right. Here it is!" Carol, as stated in her name tag, placed a check mark next to his name and handed it to him. " Sign right here. Sorry, it's been a long day. Must've mistaken you for someone else."

Nathan shrugged. "No problem."

"Alright then! Here, you'll be needing this for the day activities." Carol handed him a medium sized backpack. "The orientation would be after dinner. So you have approximately.." She glanced at the clock behind her. "2 hours to settle in, meet your cabin-mates and to take a look around. Dinner's at 6."

"Thanks." Nathan grabbed the backpack and started walking to Cabin D. He just hoped that this camp won't be as horrible as he think it is. He was supposed to spend his summer training for soccer and hanging out with his friends everyday but instead he's stuck here in a camp that he didn't want to go to. His mom told him that it was a great opportunity for him to meet new people and be more independent. Right, like he wasn't independent enough. He knew that his mom just thought that his friends were a bad influence to him. Well, it's not as if she was completely wrong. They were suspended for a week for trespassing the school grounds on a school night and messing up the props for the school play. But whatever, Nathan paid his dues by doing community service. Wasn't that enough?

He was deep in thought that he didn't even realize that he was already in front of Cabin D. He sighed and opened the door. A group of guys turned to look at him. Nathan walked past them to go to his room.

"Hey!" One of them called out.

Nathan briefly closed his eyes, trying to be patient. He turned around and forced himself to smile, "Yeah?"

"I'm James." The guy walked towards him and held out his hand. What is this?

Nathan looked at his outstretched hand and ignored it. "Nathan."

James awkwardly drew back his hand. "So that's Scott, Noah and Kevin." He pointed towards the other guys lounging on the couch as he introduced them. The guys waved half-heartedly, apparently noticing Nathan's cold demeanor. Nathan sighed to himself, he knew he was being a jerk. But he was dead tired and he didn't feel like making small talk.

"Hey. Uh, if you don't mind, I'd really like to rest before dinner. It's been a long trip." Nathan tried to compensate for his earlier rudeness.

James looked like he understood. "I know what you mean, dude. This place is like in the middle of nowhere. I've no idea where my parents found it."

"Yeah, my mom practically had to literally drag me here." Kevin said. Or was it Noah? Who knows. Nathan really needed that nap.

"The only thing good about this place is that there's this huge soccer field just right before the lake."

Nathan perked up at that. "Soccer field?"

They nodded. "Yeah, we're gonna play after the orientation. You in?" Scott asked him. The only way Nathan remembered that he was Scott was because he was holding a huge bowl of Cheetos.

"Yeah, I'm in." Nathan grinned. Maybe this camp wouldn't be so bad after all.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thank you for the reviews and follows! Here's the next chapter :)

Caroline sighed as she dropped her keys on the desk by the door. She has been working non-stop and staying at work even past her working hours the last three days. She just didn't like going home knowing Nathan wasn't there. For the first time in 17 years, Caroline truly felt alone.

She shrugged the feeling away though, she shouldn't dwell on any of those feelings. With an air of determination, she stormed towards the liquor cabinet and opened it with a flourish. Inside was a few bottles of wine but none of the hard stuff. But what else did she expect? Sure, she had the occasional glass of red, but it wasn't like she could get full on wasted whenever she wanted. She had a kid to raise. She can't go on partying like a teenager anymore. Right, she's going to call the girls and invite them for a girls' night in. It was long overdue, anyway.

She grabbed her phone and was about to dial Katherine's number when her phone staring ringing.

"Hello?"

"So Nadia and my moody thirteen year old that apparently hates the world right now are staying at their father's for the weekend."

Ah, speak of the devil. "I was just about to call you, actually. Fancy a night in with the girls?"

"It's like you're reading my mind. So I was thinking, you, me, Bon and maybe my dear sister Elena if she's not so busy being basic. We'll bring the drinks, you take care of the pizza."

Caroline laughed at that, feeling like she was the teenager instead of the mom. Its just like old times, really.

"I have alcohol here, you know." Caroline said as she grabbed the notebook where she writes down the delivery numbers.

There was silence on the other line.

"Yeah..We'll bring the booze." Katherine repeated.

"Hey!"

"See ya in 20!" Katherine chirped then hung up. Caroline shaked her head and went to her room to change out of her work clothes into something more comfortable.

Two hours, Friends marathon, a box of pizza and a bottle of Jack later..

Caroline, Katherine, Elena and Bonnie were all sprawled out on separate couches on Caroline's living room.

"I just love this couch.." Katherine said as she stared at the ceiling. "I could lie down in this thing forever."

"Yeah, Nathan says the same thing. I literally have to drag him out of that couch." Caroline said and finished her glass of red in one gulp.

She leaned back on the bean chair she was sitting on with a happy sigh. Its been a while since she's been this relaxed and carefree. She loved her job, she ran a small event planning business as well as being a part time drama coach at one of the top art universities just a little bit outside town. Sure, it may seem a lot at times and she wasn't particularly a fan of the extra long drive she had to take to the university but her jobs supported them and gave her and her son a comfortable life. And it wasn't as if she wasn't enjoying it. She loved running events like she did back when she was in high school and she loved teaching drama as well. Aside from that, running her own business allows her to control her time and be able to be a mom that is present in her son's life. She didn't want to her son to grow up like her. Her mom seldomly spent time with her because of the nature of her job. Caroline understood though because being a sheriff required late and unusual working hours. And it was great, she was home when it was time for dinner and they'd talk about their day. Then during the weekends, they'd do various things such as go to the movies, or eating at their favorite restaurants after one of Nathan's soccer games. Sometimes it's just the two of them and the other times they'd all hangout with Caroline's friends and their kids. Even though it was only the two of them, Nathan grew up surrounded by a lot of people who loved him. Caroline knew that Nathan often wondered about the father he never met. She knew that he often felt left out whenever his friends would bond with their fathers or during father-son days at his school. His Uncle Matt always went with him to those though, for which Caroline was so grateful for.

Ugh..this is why she doesn't drink that much. Drinking leads to her thinking of thoughts that she would usually block out and desperately tried not think about.

Thoughts that lead to her other son, Clayton. She always wondered how he was, if he was happy.. The day she had to give him up was the worst day of her life. It hurt her even more than the day she walked out the door and left Nik.

Niklaus.. now that was a name Caroline hasn't said outloud in years. Yes, she wonders about him as well. She tries not to dwell on thoughts about him because it would usually lead to "what ifs". What if she hadn't left? What if she stayed and they worked things out? But what if she stayed and things just got worse? There were times when she wanted to pick up the phone and call him. To ask how he was, to ask about her son. The last she heard from him was before he settled everything and left for London. During the divorce process, twins stayed with Caroline at her mother's house during the weekdays and stayed with Klaus during the weekends. His sister Rebekah eventually flew in from London to help him. It was a difficult few months. Caroline was surprised it didn't take longer. Perhaps it was due to Mikaelson's influence. And perhaps it was also because Caroline signed a prenup. It was her idea. Klaus refused, but she was so young back when they met and got married, still a senior in college. She didn't want Klaus to think that she was marrying him for any other reason aside from the fact that she loved him and wanted to build a family with him. So because of that, there wasn't any problem with the division of assets and other stuff. The only problem Caroline had to face was the fact that she was going to lose one of her sons. It was a miracle how she survived those months knowing that she would soon say goodbye to Clayton or Nathan. It wasn't as if Caroline or Klaus chose which child they would take. They weren't toys that one could choose from. And she couldn't bare to choose. It just wasn't done. Either way, she was losing one of them. Clayton could've ended up with Caroline, and Nathan with Klaus.

The last time Caroline saw Klaus was when he was leaving to return to London. She went to the hotel that he, Rebekah and Clayton were staying at during their last few days in Mystic Falls (they had already sold their house by then). She went to say goodbye to Klaus, and to her son. He had handed her a cheque with a ridiculously large amount. Klaus told her it was for them to start a new life comfortably. Caroline wanted to feel insulted and to refuse the money and say that she could very well provide for her son but eventually, she thought of Nathan. She did already have a job and savings but it wouldn't be the same. She wouldn't allow her pride to deny Nathan the life he could've had if they hadn't separated. Klaus had actually wanted to give her the means to start her own business but Caroline refused. She wanted to earn it herself. And she did. After a few years of hard work, she was finally able to save enough and open her own business. Caroline was also able to buy them a nice house and pay for Nathan's education all by herself. And even if they don't exactly live in a mansion, they were happy and comfortable. Caroline made sure that Nathan would never have to want anything more than what he was given. And she'd like to think that aside from his longing for his dad, he was content. And for all that, she was proud of herself. The money that Klaus had given her all went into a savings account for Nathan to use when he was old enough.

The day Caroline had to say her final goodbye to Clayton was possibly the worst day of her life. She remembers how much she never wanted to let go of Clayton, even as they were about to board the plane to London. Caroline always wrote letters to Clayton for his birthday every year but she never sends them. Because that was the agreement they had in court. They each take one son. That way, they'd never have to see each other again. Its been almost seventeen years but Caroline could still feel the pain of losing her other son. She knows that it will never go away, the pain. But she has to live with it. It was not fair and Caroline would forever despise the side of her that gave up her other son. But what was her other option? She'd take both kids? She wouldn't do that to Nik. And if he took both, she'd never want that as well. It was complicated.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Elena asked her all of the sudden, pulling Caroline out from her depressing thoughts.

"It's nothing.." Caroline shrugged and poured herself another glass of wine. She glared at the bottle. It was supposed to make her forget, not make her think.

"I know you, Care. C'mon. What's bothering you?" Elena nudged her shoulder as she tried to fit herself beside Caroline.

Caroline scooted over to make room for Elena. "It's really nothing.. was just thinking about..stuff."

Elena's face was filled with understanding as she placed her hand on Caroline's. "Okay."

Caroline smiled at her, grateful that she didn't have to explain herself.

"Alright, I'm just realizing what a depressing sight this is." Katherine said, jumping up all of the sudden which made her kind of trip over the box of pizza. "Let's hit the clubs?"

Bonnie laughed. "Aren't we a little too old for clubs?"

"And what clubs? You mean, the Grill?" Caroline joked.

"No, the new one. The one that Tyler owns that opened a few months ago. C'mon. I'll drive." Katherine beamed, dangling a set of car keys in her hand. Caroline blinked. It seemed like it suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"But can you drive in that state?" Elena asked, looking concerned.

Katherine waved away Elena's concern. "I'm fine. I hardly drank a thing. Let's go!" She said and started making her way towards Caroline's bedroom. Caroline assumed to borrow a pair of heels in exchange for the flats she was wearing.

Caroline contemplated declining, but then she remembered that she did want to forget and just let loose for once. This was going to be a long night.

xxxxxxx

Clay hoped he didn't look as ridiculous as he felt. He was currently wearing a white fencing jacket, fencing gloves and a fencing mask. He was suddenly thankful for all those times he and his dad played sword fighting in their garden while his Uncle Kol played commentator and his Aunt Bekah ignored them, sipping on her tea. Yeah, his family was medieval like that.

It was eight in the morning and even if he was usually a morning person, he wished he could just go back to the cabin to take a nap. An excrutiatingly loud alarm woke them up at six. At first he tried to ignore it but it was useless because he was sure that he would still be able to hear it all the way from London. It was that loud. Last night, Clay and his cabin-mates decided to bike around camp. They ended up seeing an abandoned house and decied to take a bit of a tour. They snuck back to their cabin past curfew and decided to watch a movie. It's been almost a week since camp started and Clay could honestly say that he was genuinely enjoying his time here. Mornings usually consisted of various physical and team-building activites, then lunch, then during the afternoons they had another activity but this time matching their personal interests. Clay usually spent his afternoons in a painting workshop. After that, they were free to do whatever they pleased. Then dinner came and usually there was a bonfire after dinner. Clay hadn't had the chance to meet other people aside from his cabin-mates but he was thankful that his cabin-mates seemed to be as dorky as him. Maybe they were grouped by their level of dorkiness, Clay thought with a snicker.

"Ready?" Hans asked, standing beside him.

"Yup, as swift as a coursing river and with all the strength of a raging fire." Clay said. He thinks that Hans was already sort of used to him blurting out random things. He was way past worrying about that now. And anyway, he needed to concentrate on the battle he was about to embark on.

Yeah, he has sort of has a flair for the dramatic. Blame his father.

"So its Clay Mikaelson representing Cabin B." Becky, the one in-charge for the physical activities, said through her megaphone. "Please step forward, Clay."

Clay followed her instruction and stepped forward into the field. He could hear his cabin-mates cheering him on. Yeap, he got this.

"And for Cabin B, Nathan Forbes! Please step forward." Becky continued, motioning for the guy on the other side of the field.

Clay peered at him, trying to figure out if he's talked to him or saw him before. Cause, you gotta know who your opponent is. Maybe he taking this a bit too seriously. But can he be blamed? He was basically shit at all the other sports they played so far. He can barely throw a ball, let alone shoot it inside a basket. This is the one sport he excelled at.

His opponent Nathan, as Becky called him, stepped forward with an air confidence in him. Clay tried to mimic Nathan's confident stride as they walked towards each other. He stopped halfway though when he realized that he probably looked like a baby deer trying to walk for the first time.

When they were finally facing each other, Clay noticed how they were about the same height and the same build. This was gonna be a fair fight then. Even though they were both wearing masks, Clay could swear that they were sizing each other up.

If he listens closely, Clay swears he could hear Pompeii by Bastille playing in the background. Or I'll Make a Man Out of You.

"Okay, when you hear the whistle, you may begin!"

*whistling sound through the megaphone*

"Begin!"

Nathan immediately executed a flurry of thrusts and slashes but Clay elegantly parried and dodged each and every blow. Without missing a beat, Clay quickly launched a counter attack aimed straight at Nathan's stomach. But Nathan quickly jumped back, evading it completely. Nathan's looked like he was starting to get agitated. Clay smirked, knowing that he practically had this in the bag. Sure, Nathan was fast and athletic, but he surely wasn't experienced at fencing based on his reckless attacks, Clay thought. Wow, since when was he this competitive? Clay quickly dashed forward and aimed for Nathan's chest this time. The attack looked as if it hit but Nathan was able to dogde it just in time.

"Uhm. That was a hit wasn't, it?" Clay asked Nathan.

"Close, but not quite." Nathan arrogantly shot back.

After that momentary exchange, both of them quickly jumped back. Clay could hear various cheers from both teams, but he his mind was so set in the game that it didn't really affect him. Nathan, on the other hand, seemed distracted. Clay noticed that the lake was right behind where Nathan was standing, meaning he could no longer dodge Clay's attacks by jumping backwards. Taking advantage of this, Clay quickly dashed forward and thrust his sabre towards Nathan once again. Nathan, not realizing that the lake was right behind him, quickly jumped backward. However, as he was about to fall into the lake, he quickly grabbed Clay's outstreched hand, and they both fell into the water.

"Hell!" Clay exclaimed as they both emerged from the water. He can hear Nathan muttering a series of profanities behind him.

"What the fuck did you do that for?!"

Clay turned to face him. "Me? You pulled me!"

"You PUSHED me in!" Nathan shot back.

"I certainly did not push you." Clay stated as calm as could because first of all, why are they conversing when they should be getting out of this bloody cold water. He started swimming back.

He looked up to see several worried faces peering at them. Becky looked so worried that is was quite a hilarious sight. She had her hands outstretched towards them like she didn't know what to do.

With the help of their cabin-mates, Clay and Nathan were finally standing on solid ground. He could practically feel Nathan glaring at him. Clay really ought to take his fencing mask off now. And that he did.

Once he took it off, someone nudged him.

"You okay?"

Who was this? Ah well, probably just concerned. "I'm alright. Freezing cold, though."

The guy gave him an odd look. "What the hell, man? Did the cold water suddenly give you an accent?"

"What?"

"What the fuck?" Someone said from behind him. Clay turned around and saw well..Bloody hell. He knew that he can get a bit bizarre sometimes, but was he going mad now?

Clay was so in shock he didn't know what to say. "Uhm. So you look like me." Well, wasn't he being Captain Obvious?


	4. Chapter 4

Nathan was in shock. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Cause it was well..him.

"Uhm. So you look like me." Clay, or whatever his name was, said.

Well, no shit Sherlock.

Nathan still couldn't find it in him to say a thing. He was freaked out, to say the least.

"Woah." James said all the sudden. Nathan turned to look at his friend. At this point he'd rather look at anyone else who didn't fucking look like him. "It is just me or am I seeing double?"

"How is this even possible?" Clay stepped closer to Nathan, asking him. Fuck knows how, Nathan wanted to say.

He decided immediately that he was going to act this was no big deal because well.. because he didn't wanna deal with it, that's why.

Nathan shrugged. "So we look alike. What's the big deal?"

Clay's eyes seemed to pop out of their sockets. Damn, could his eyes do that as well? "N-not a big deal?!" Clay sputtered.

"What, is this the first time you've seen someone who looked similar to you?" Yes, that's it then. They just looked eerily similar. Because Nathan could probably count with one hand the number of times he's seen someone who looked a bit like him. Probably not as much as Clay does. But still.

"Mate, I've never seen anyone who looked exactly like me."

"Well, MATE, here in America, there is an abundance of people with blue eyes and blond hair."

Clay pulled his hair in frustration. Nathan wanted to laugh, to be honest. Look, he didn't want to think about it because well, the other explanation would be that they were twins. Because then that would mean that he'd have a fucking brother.

"Actually, our eyes don't really look the same. Yours are freakishly huge. Like an owl." Nathan said.

Clay scowled. "It's not."

"It is, man." Nathan said, nodding at him with mock sympathy. Clay narrowed his eyes at him, which made Nathan take a step back. He was freaked out, all right. Because..well..

His mom had that very same expression whenever she was frustrated with him.

Okay, Nathan's had enough of this. There was only so much weirdness that he could handle for a day. And it was only 8:30 in the morning.

"Okay boys, let's just go through this calmly, and rationally." Becky suddenly said from beside him, seeming to notice the tension growing between Nathan and Clay.

"I'm heading back to the Cabin." Nathan said, already starting to walk away when Becky suddenly grabbed his arm.

What the hell? Nathan wanted to shrug her hand off of him.

"No, you are not going anywhere until this is sorted."

"What's there to sort? We look alike, so what?" Nathan asked, not even bothering to conceal his annoyance anymore. He knew was being even more rude than usual. His mother was going to whack him in the head if she saw him behaving like this. Now that Nathan thought about it, how was it that nobody ever noticed that there were two of him walking around camp all week?

"We should call your parents." She said.

At that, Clay turned back to the conversation from where he was talking to some guys. "I don't think that's necessary."

For the first time, Nathan agreed with Clay. "Yeah, let's not."

"Okay." Becky looked like she herself was trying to keep her patience in check. "Okay. Let's just all go back to our respective cabins then regroup for lunch."

"Uh..Nathan?" Clay was suddenly beside him.

"Woah. Dude. You can't just do things like that." Nathan moved away from him a bit. A look passed over Clay's face but it was gone before Nathan could analyze if he looked hurt or something.

"Do you wanna talk about this?" Clay waved his hand between both of them.

What Nathan wanted was to get the hell out of here. "Nope, I don't." And with that, he started walking away from the field. Fuck everyone. He suddenly can't wait for this camp to be over.

xxxxxx

Clay wanted to laugh at the ironic state he found himself in. He was currently unpacking his suitcase. The one he's just packed thirty minutes ago. Yes, he was placed in a new cabin and his new cabin-mate was none than Nathan Forbes, his doppelganger. The cabin they were placed in was not as nice as the cabin he stayed in when he first arrived. First, it was located in a more secluded area, away from "civilization". It was smaller, only having two rooms. The walls were so thin he felt like he was starring in a tv series with music playing in the background while he was unpacking his suitcase, contemplating his life choices.

Oh right, because there really was music playing in the background. Nathan has been blasting some emo song or other ever since they've arrived here. Clay wanted to unplug the goddamn speaker.

How did he find himself in this predicament? Well, it started three days ago. After he met Nathan at the fencing tournament, he'd been approaching him and trying to talk to him. He didn't know what he wanted to achieve by doing so, but he just wanted to find out something, anything, on why the hell they looked exactly alike. Then Nathan kept ignoring and avoiding him. When they inevitably had to face each other again for the second fencing tournament, Nathan literally pushed him which caused Clay to fall into the lake for the second time. Whether it was intentional or not, Clay didn't find out because once he emerged from the water, he pushed Nathan to the ground-still in his fencing mask and all- and they engaged something that looked like a combination of a boxing match and animals fighting in a jungle. Not that Clay was any good in boxing or had any physical strength worth showing off. It was ugly and he ended up having a black eye. Clay didn't know what the facilitators were smoking when they came up with the idea of having them live together as punishment. This was going to be a recipe for disaster.

Clay shoved the last of his clothes inside the closet. Okay, what was he going to do now? As part of the punishment, they were not allowed to join any of the morning tournaments anymore. Clay wanted to laugh in their faces and say, "Well, it's not like I was enjoying any of them anyway!". That was the only part of the punishment that Clay was glad about. He didn't have to endure any of the sports he was shit at. So what now?

Clay decided that he was gonna grab something to eat in the cafeteria then. He wondered if he should ask Nathan if he wanted something from the cafeteria or if he wanted to join him. Nathan would surely decline but it wouldn't hurt to ask. Plus, now that they're cabin-mates, Clay figured that they might as well just forget about their animosity towards each other and just become civil if they can't be friends.

Clay walked out of his room and crossed the hall to Nathan's room. Pierce The Veil was now blasting through the speakers when Clay knocked on the door.

"Yeah?" Nathan raised his voice over the music.

Clay pushed the door open and popped his head through the crack. "I'm gonna go to the cafeteria to grab something to eat. Want anything?"

Nathan just stared at him like Clay had something on his face. Clay was tempted to feel his face if there was something there. It wasn't totally farfetched what with Clay being the clumsy person he is.

"I'm not hungry." Nathan finally said after what seemed like ages.

"Okay." Clay shrugged. He was about to close the door when a strong gush of wind made Nathan stand up from where he was sitting to close the window. Clay immediately crossed the room to help him. After they finally managed to close the window, Clay noticed the mess that was caused by the sudden wind.

"Shit." Nathan said as he went to pick up some of the stuff that fell.

Clay bent down to pick up a couple of papers that were scattered. "Here. They aren't ruined."

Nathan reached for the papers. If Clay wasn't mistaken, he looked a bit grateful. "Thanks."

"No problem." Clay stood up and started walking back out. "So, I'm gonna go now."

"Do you like Oreos?" Nathan suddenly asked him, causing Clay to stop right in his tracks.

"Me?" Clay asked, pointing to himself.

Nathan gave him a weird look. "Who else? See anyone around?" He waved his hand around the room.

Right. Clay sometimes really wanted to smack himself.

"So? You want some?" Nathan asked him again as he dug through his bag and retrieved a pack of Oreos.

Clay tilted his head, contemplating accepting the offer or sticking with his plan to go to the cafeteria. Ah, what the hell. He didn't really like taking the long walk to the cafeteria anyway.

"Yeah sure, thanks." Clay said and caught the pack of Oreos as Nathan threw it towards him. He sat at the edge of Nathan's bed and dug through the pack. He opened the cookie and took out the cream.

"No freaking way." Nathan suddenly said, eyes wide as he stared at the oreo Clay was holding. What now?

"What?" Clay asked warily. Nathan seemed like a ticking time bomb.

Nathan shook his head, pointing at the oreo. "You take out the white part too?"

"Yeah? So?"

"I do that too!" Nathan told Clay accusingly, as if it was all his fault. Clay didn't know what the big deal was, really.

"Mate, lots of people don't fancy the cream part."

Nathan just shook his head and sat beside him to take an oreo from the bag. "This is some weird shit man."

"The weirdest." Clay agreed.

"So where exactly do you come from?" Nathan asked him. Clay wanted to laugh because it was as if he came from another planet or something. He wanted to joke about it, but didn't think Nathan would appreciate his weirdness just yet.

"London. You?"

"Wouldn't have guessed." Nathan deadpanned. "I'm from Mystic Falls."

Mystic Falls? Clay must've looked a bit confused because Nathan rolled his eyes and went to add, "In Virginia. It's a really small town."

"Oh, Virginia!" Clay exclaimed. He's never actually been there even if he wanted to. He and his dad travelled a lot, but his dad never wanted to go there for some reason Clay didn't know. "I've always wanted to visit. I know someone who lives there. He was a classmate of mine in an art class I took last summer."

"Really?"

"Yeah. So, what's it like in Mystic falls?" Clay asked, genuinely interested.

"Well, for starters it's a small town so almost everyone knows everyone. It can get a bit suffocating but.." Nathan paused and shrugged. "It's home, you know? Wouldn't change a thing about it."

"Yeah, I get it." Sort of. London could be too small and too big at the same time, at least for Clay.

"So, what's it like in London?"

"Well, terrible weather I'm telling ya." Clay laughed, then he suddenly got an idea. He pulled out his phone from his pocket. "Here, I'll show you some pictures."

He went to his photos folder and showed Nathan pictures of his school, him and his friends, some scenery photos, photos of museums etc. One particular photo made Nathan speak up though.

"Who's that?" Nathan asked him, pointing at his dad who's back was facing the camera, pointing at one of the paintings in their art room at home.

"My dad. He was talking about something or other when I snapped the photo."

Clay continued showing him various shots from his phone when he suddenly noticed how Nathan was not making his usual commentary anymore. Maybe he got bored, Clay figured, because how many snapshots of boring old scenery can one take anyway? Clay went to put his phone back in his pocket.

"So how old are you, anyway?" Clay asked him, just to fill the silence.

That seemed to snap Nathan out of his reverie. "Turning 17 on November 11."

Clay almost choked on the oreo he was chewing on. "You're birthday is on November 11?!"

"Yeah.." Nathan nodded slowly, eyeing him weirdly.

"That's my birthday too!" Clay exclaimed, standing up and pacing the room. What the hell is this? They look alike, they have the same birthday and fine, they even have the same bloody habit of not eating the cream part of a bloody oreo. Clay felt like he was going to faint any second now.

Clay stopped to look at Nathan, who, uncharastically, was just sitting there looking calm as ever.

"Why aren't you freaking out?" Clay wanted to shake Nathan. He started pacing again. That was the only way he could cope. "We have the same birthday. We look alike. This doesn't make any SENSE! I think I'm gonna pass out. I think-"

"Do you have a mom?" Nathan asked him, making Clay suddenly stop pacing.

"I..what?"

"Do you have a mom?" Nathan repeated. What kind of a stupid question is that?

"Of course I do! How the hell would I be here if I didn't have one?"

Nathan shook his head, frustrated. "No, I mean, is she with you?"

That made Clay stop. "Well..no. My dad said they separated when I was still a baby. Why?"

Then suddenly, Clay understood what Nathan was implying. "Do you..do you live with your dad?"

He knew the answer then and there based on Nathan's expression but he was still scared to know.

"No." Nathan slowly shook his head, seeming to be in a permanent state of shock now.

Clay sat down on the bed again, staring at the floor in shock. He needed a moment.

"I have a picture of my dad..but it's..it's old and it's ripped and.."

"I HAVE A PHOTO OF MY MOM BUT ITS TORN TOO." Clay stood up and shouted, making Nathan flinch.

"Calm down, man." Nathan stood up as well and eyed him warily.

"I don't understand how you're so calm about this."

"I'm not! But to be honest I'm getting a bit worried about the state you're in. You look like you're about to have a seizure."

"Because maybe I am?! Do you know what this means?"

"Look, this could be a total coincidence."

"What kind of coincidence is this? Some witchery shit?" Clay himself didn't know what he was talking about already. His mind was going a mile a minute.

"Let's just show each other the pictures then." Nathan started to dig through his bag for the photo, Clay assumed.

He slowly took out his wallet from his pocket and plucked the photo out.

Nathan turned back to face him, holding his photo close to his chest.

"On the count of 3, we show each other the picture."

"This is so freaky." Clay shook his head, wondering how the hell he found himself in this situation.

"Okay, one.."

"Two.."

"Three."

They both revealed the photos they were holding and Clay felt like his eyes were about to pop from their sockets. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. "That's.. my dad."

"And that's my mom! Holy shit." Nathan was staring at the photo Clay was holding. Clay, on the other hand, couldn't stop looking at the photo of his dad. Nathan's hands were trembling. Clay couldn't even begin to process what was happening.

They looked up at each other.

"You're my brother."

Clay could only nod. Bloody hell..they were twins.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hi! Thank you for the reviews and follows/favorites! I really appreciate it and it seriously makes my day :) I'll probably be updating slower next week due to school work but I'll try to update as much as possible. **

Nathan up stared at the ceiling, unable to sleep. He was finally able to wrap his mind around the fact that he had a brother. In fact, they've already "bonded" through various things like Nathan taught Clay some soccer and they went biking the other day. Turns out, even if they were complete opposites, they still got along pretty well. He also was able to to process the fact that he had a father who was living in London. A father that he never knew and that was with his brother. Well, he obviously knew that he had a dad, but he never allowed himself to think about the possibility of ever meeting him. He also wondered how the hell his life suddenly became a Hollywood movie. This kind of shit just doesn't happen in real life.

He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. When he was a kid, he tried asking his mom a couple of times why she and his dad separated but all Nathan got were vague answers. Then one day, his mom gave him the photo of his dad. She told Nathan that his dad loved him even though he wasn't with them. Nathan felt a stinging in his right eye and furiously wiped away the tear that was threatening to fall. He's always wondered how it was to have a dad. Clay got to experience that. But Nathan knew he was being unfair because Clay in turn didn't know what it was like to have a mom. Did Clay also wonder what it's like to have a mom?

Nathan suddenly sat up from his bed with wide eyes. He just got a bizarre idea. He didn't even consider what time it was when he quickly walked out of his bedroom to cross the hall to Clay's room.

He still had the decency to knock though.

"Clay? You up?"

He heard a loud thump from behind a door and was mildly worried when the door suddenly flew wide open to reveal a bewildered-looking Clay.

"What the hell happened in there?"

"I kind of..sort of.. fell off the bed." Clay said sheepishly.

"Yeah, we gotta work on your clumsiness." Nathan decided as he pushed past Clay and entered his brother's (yes, he had a brother now) room.

"Why would we need to do that?" Clay asked as he closed to door and went back to sit on his bed.

Nathan dragged a chair close to Clay's bed and sat on it. "So I have this idea."

"Why do I find myself afraid to find out whatever this idea of yours is?"

"Just here me out okay?"

Clay rolled his eyes but nodded.

"Alright. So you're probably wondering what its like to have a mom right?"

Clay just nodded. It was probably to Nathan's advantage that Clay seemed to still be half-asleep. He wasn't opposing him like usual.

"I also wonder what it's like to have a dad." Nathan admitted quietly, hoping Clay wouldn't hear it.

The look on Clay's face showed that he heard it though. He just smiled. "He's great. I mean, dad is. You'll love him."

"Mom too." Nathan agreed, face reddening. So another opposite trait. His brother had no problem with being an open book while Nathan runs way at the first mention of anything emotion-related.

"So what's this idea of yours?" Clay asked, steering the conversation back.

Right. Nathan cleared his throat. "So I'm suggesting that we switch places."

Clay looked like he was going to fall off the bed again. They really needed to fix that if this was to work. "Switch..what?!"

"Switch places. In a week when camp's over, you go to New York as me and I fly back to London as you."

Clay seemed to be thinking about it. Nathan waited for him to process the information.

"I don't know..I mean, it's going to be obvious. They'll figure it out."

So Nathan needed to convince him more, then. Alright, that he could do. He didn't win the Marketing Award last year in school for no reason. He had mastered in the arts of persuasion from an early age.

"They won't." Nathan said in his most assuring voice. Then he adapted what he figured was a convincing British accent. "I'll just talk like this and blurt out unsual things every five minutes."

"Okay, that was really on point." Clay laughed. Then he schooled his features, "And I'll just act like a jerk 98% of the time."

Nathan grinned, impressed at his brother's American accent. "See? They won't notice a thing."

"But how will we switch back?"

Good point. But Nathan was already steps ahead. "We tell them the truth at the end of the summer, and they'll have to switch us back. Then they'll meet."

He expression Clay had on his face made Nathan smirk. He knew that Clay already agreed.

The living room of their cabin had turned out looking like a lecture room what with all the posters on the walls filled with various writings and drawings. For the past four days, Clay has been learning everything he could about Nathan's life. In turn, Clay taught Nathan everything he needed to know about his life in London. Clay found out that Nathan played for the soccer varsitiy has his school. It made Clay want to back out then and there because there was no way he would be able to fake playing that. But then he remembered that the switch would only last for the summer so he was safe. Nathan also told him about his mum's bestfriends; Bonnie and the twins named Katherine and Elena. Nathan said that he'd always see them visiting the house with their children. The children were like cousins or second siblings to Nathan. He also told Clay about his Uncle Matt. The one who acted like a second father to Nathan. Clay asked him if he was dating his mum but Nathan just laughed and told him that Matt was just like her brother and that his mom never dates anyone.

In turn Clay told Nathan about his Uncles and Aunt. About how he was closest to his Aunt Rebekah and that she was the only one who knew about his sexuality as of the moment. Nathan didn't seem to mind about Clay being gay, for which Clay was grateful for. In fact, Nathan even made a rather touching speech for which he made Clay promise never to mention to anyone or else there'd be repurcussions. Anyway, Clay told Nathan about his weekend activites, his friends and the various everyday things that he needed to know.

Clay reckons that they pretty much have everything covered. In two days, he would be seeing his mum for the first time. He couldn't wait.


	6. Chapter 6

(Clay's POV)

This was probably the most nervous Clay has been in his whole life. He was torn between rushing towards the waiting area where he knew his mom was waiting for him and running back to an airplane that would take him back to London, where he was comfortable and well, at home. But he shook the feeling off and kept walking. He's been waiting for this moment before he even knew that is was possible and now that it was here, he wouldn't allow himself to ruin it.

When Clay finally arrived at the waiting area, he looked around for his mom. He suddenly heard someone yell his name. Well, Nathan's name. He turned around and he couldn't believe his eyes. It was his mom.

"Nathan! Over here, honey!" Caroline waved at him frantically.

Clay grinned and tried his best not to completely abandon his suitcase and run towards her. Before he knew it, he was pulled into a tight hug.

"Oh, sweetie I missed you so much!" Caroline exclaimed.

Clay hugged her back as hard, closing his eyes. "I can't believe you're finally here, mom."

Then he immediately opened his eyes. Damn it, he should really keep his emotions in check if this was ever going to work. Its only been a few minutes. He might as well have told her, "Surprise mum! It's me, Clay!"

He stepped back from the hug and tried to adapt a nonchalant expression. It didn't seem to work though because Caroline was looking at him with intently.

Clay tried to look away but Caroline cupped his face and gave him a surprised look. "Nathan? Are you crying?"

Clay shook his head, not trusting himself to speak this time.

Caroline's eyes widened. "You are!" Then she hugged him again, "My big baby!"

Clay pulled away from the hug and pretented to fix his hair to wipe at his eyes. "Who's crying? I'm not crying. It's probably just dust or something."

His mom seemed like she wasn't having any of it though, she just batted his hands away and cupped his face again. She was looking at him with an expression that made Clay feel like she knew something he didn't before she finally released him and shook her head.

"Alright. Let's go home, and you can tell me all about camp." Caroline said cheerfully and linked her arm through his as they walked towards the exit gates. "It better be horrible because I'm never allowing you to go back."

Clay laughed, trying to figure out how Nathan would respond to that. "Don't worry mom, it was shit."

"Language, mister!" Caroline scolded him but she was laughing.

_***Meanwhile at the London Heathrow Airport* **_

**(Nathan's POV)**

_From: Dad_

_Son, I wouldn't be able to pick you up. I'm still at a meeting. Will probably go on until the end of the day. Adrian will be waiting for you at the airport._

Nathan tried to hide his disappointment upon reading the text he's just recieved from his father. He was really looking forward to seeing his dad and what he gets is a clipped message about him being in a meeting.

_Will this be the same scenario if he was Clay?_

Then he shook his head. There was no way anyone aside from Clay and himself knew that they've switched places. He knew he was being sensitive and acting like a whiny child. He was sixteen, for God's sake. Yet here he was, acting like he was ten.

He schooled his features and started walking towards the exit doors of the terminal. He craned his neck to look for Adrian, an intern at his dad's company (Clay showed him pictures).

"Clay!"

Nathan turned and saw a boy a few years older than him walking towards him.

"How was camp?"

"It was alright." He shrugged, before remembering who he should be. Shit. "I mean. It was great! Had a lot of time to work on my art."

Adrian gave him a weird look. "Nice American accent. Been practicing?"

He decided to go with the flow. "Yeah. My cabinmate's been teaching me."

"Ha! Almost got me fooled for a moment there. Lets get going, yeah?" Adrian helped him with his other bag and they made their way towards a black SUV that's parked in front.

"So.. dad told me he was in a meeting?"

Adrian nodded. "Yeah.. Probably gonna end till late. Wouldn't wait up if I were you."

That's strange. Clay told him that his dad usually arrives home in time for dinner. Like him and his mom, that was their bonding time during weekdays. This is probably a really important meeting, then.

Nathan just nodded instead and decided to listen to music on his ipod.

Throughout the ride, Adrian would shoot him suspicious looks but Nathan decided to ignore it. Nathan figured he could just reason later on that he was jetlagged. Which was half true. The other reason is that now that he's here, its like all those weeks of practicing with Clay flew out the window. He was overwhelmed. He's so conscious of how he acts that it almost seems so unnatural. Well, at least to him. So it was really a blessing in disguise that his dad would be arriving home late. Nathan felt like he needed a few moments to himself.

He must've dozed off because the next thing he knew, someone was shaking him.

"Clay. Wake up. We're here."

Nathan slowly opened his eyes and looked out the window. There it was. The house he's only seen through pictures until now.

House..More like a mansion, Nathan thought with a snicker. Pictures didn't do it justice. He knew that it was home to Clay but now, it just looked empty to him. A bit haunted, even. He suddenly wished he could run back home where his house looked homey and welcoming.

Well, too late for that.

They walked up the steps to the front porch and Adrian didn't even bother with the doorbell and went to open the door. Was he even really an intern? What kind of intern does house visits and picks up their boss' son from the airport?

He took a step inside and he suddenly felt chills. He can barely see a thing. It was eerily quiet, as well. Is it always like this in here?

"Where are all the lights? Is it-"

"SURPRISE!"

Nathan blinked in surprise as all the lights suddenly turned on and he was suddenly pulled into a hug before he can even absorb what was going on.

"I've missed you so much!" Someone more or less shrieked while basically suffocating him in a tight hug. This was probably his Aunt Bekah.

Nathan awkwardly patted her back. He did not do physical contact. Thankfully, she didn't notice his reaction because she was busy fussing about and declaring that she won't ever allow Nik to ship him off to the middle of nowhere ever again.

Then suddenly, the father he's only known through pictures was in front of him and Nathan didn't know how to react.

"You really think I'd miss your homecoming?" Klaus laughed while pulling him into a hug as well. These people and their hugging.. his mom belonged here.

_Well, she did once._

"Yeah.." Nathan scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"Like your dad would miss this." Elijah laughed, placing one hand on Nathan's shoulder while sporting a glass of champagne on his other hand.

It was like there was no time to even speak because he was being pulled into different groups of small talk. How many people were even here?

His Aunt Rebekah suddenly looped her arm through his and was ushering him further into the house. "So, you must tell me all about camp later okay?"

Nathan nodded, still feeling overwhelmed. It was only as they were walking towards the kitchen that he noticed how the house was actually really cozy and not imposing at all. The interior did not match the impression that exterior did.

Since when did he even focus on interior design? He blamed his mom.

"Are you hungry?" Aunt Bekah asked as they reached the kitchen table which was filled with all sorts of pastries, pasta, pies, and cakes. "I made all your favorites! Well, bought them."

"Thanks but I'm not really that hungry.." Nathan trailed off while walking around the vast modern kitchen. What got his attention was the white board on one side of the counter beside the door with a calendar of events and an empty side for notes and stuff. They had the same one back home. He looked at the date today and "Clay arrives home from camp" was scribbled neatly in what he assumes to be Klaus' handwriting.

"He's been counting the days." Rebekah said, looking at the white board fondly. "But I can't blame him, its the first time you've been away for so long! He's been paranoid. And he can't even call whenever he wanted to."

It was true. The camp banned the use of cellphones. All phones were placed in a safe and one can only use it during the weekends unless there were any emergencies from home or at camp. If the use of phones were allowed, Nathan didn't think that he'd be doing anything there but talking to his mom. She'd call every thirty minutes. He wondered how she was doing now. And Clay. Nathan reminded himself to call him once he gets some time to himself.

"You sure you're not hungry?" His Aunt Bekah called his attention back to rows of food placed on the table.

"Not really." Nathan shrugged, taking a seat on one of the chairs.

"You're always in the mood for chicken pot pie." Rebekah narrowed her eyes "Clay, you're not sick are you?" She placed a hand over Nathan's forehead.

Nathan took a step back and waved her hand away. "No, no. I'm fine. I'm just jet lagged I guess."

"Oh right. I keep forgetting about that. Why don't you go ahead and take a nap? I'll tell the rest of the family that you're tired."

"Okay. Thanks, Aunt Rebekah." Nathan can feel his aunt staring at him intently, so he jumped off the stool and quickly left the kitchen.

He took a left turn and went up the huge spiral staircase that led to the second floor.

Ok, now what? He looked left and right. Damn. He should've paid more attention when Clay was illustrating the interiors of the house cause now he had no idea where his, well, Clay's room was. He took a deep breath and decided to just open every door he passes. Surely he wouldn't reprimanded for entering any room here right?

"Right. Ok. Let's do this." He opened the door nearest to where he stood and saw..well, an empty room with a single bed, a flat screen, a small round table with two chairs to the far left. There were no personal touches whatsoever. A guest room, then. The next room looked exactly the same. How many guest rooms exactly does one house need?

He was about to open the next door when his phone suddenly rang. He looked at who was calling and almost exclaimed in relief when he saw that is was Clay.

Clay cackled. "Where are you?"

"I'm at the second floor. Just passed a second guest room."

"Oh! Alright. Second to the last room, to your right. This is why you should listen when I explain things. How long were you lost?"

"Not long." Nathan said distractedly while following his brother's instructions. He finally reached the door and pushed it open. The room was white with blue and green accents. There was a king sized bed, a flat screen, a sofa right near the foot of the bed, an extensive book shelf to the right, huge sliding glass doors that lead to a balcony that overlooked the pool area. And of course, there was an area in the balcony for Clay's art. He walked towards the study table and was fascinated by the polaroid shorts, post-its and other various things posed on the cork board. It was neat and organized. A far cry from his room back at home.

"Nath? Are you still there?"

So he kinda forgot that Clay was still on the other line. "Sorry. Anyway, I found your room."

"And I'm in your telly room."

_Telly room._ For a moment, Nathan thought about what Clay meant. "Oh you mean the entertainment room?"

"Same thing. Although why your tv needs its own room, I've no clue."

It took a lot of persuading, but when they had their house renovated last year, Nathan was able to convince his mom to have his room designed like some sort of suite. So now he had an entertainment room for when his friends visit.

"I'm actually supposed to be getting ready now. Mum said we're going to meet up with your Aunt Katherine."

"She's your aunt as well." Nathan said, suddenly missing everyone back home. But that didn't mean that he wasn't happy to be here. He was. He just needed some time to adjust.

"So, what's been happening there?"

Nathan told Clay all about what happened from the airport until he arrived home. "Then it turns out that they were all waiting for me here to surprise me."

"Yeah, sounds like something dad and Aunt Beks would come up with."

"_Nathan? Are you ready to leave?" _

Nathan heard his mom from the other line. Although he won't admit it, he misses her so much.

"Yes mom! Almost done!" Clay answered back. "Listen. I gotta go. But we'll talk soon, yeah?"

Nathan had to hand it to Clay. They way he could smoothy transition from a British to an American accent was impressive.

"Okay. Talk to you soon. Bye."

Nathan sighed and looked around. This was going to be a long two months if he doesn't get his shit together.


	7. Chapter 7

(CAROLINE'S POV)

Caroline was walking through the grocery aisle, feeling at peace for the first time in weeks. She knew that it had to do with the fact that Nathan was back home. It was really hard, being away from her son for so long. Yes, it was only a month. But it was the first time she's been away from him. She knew she had to prepare herself for when Nathan moves out for college but that was something she'd have to deal with at another time.

"Here, mom." Nathan suddenly appeared at her side, carrying a basket filled with the different kinds of chocolate she needed for the various pastries she was going to bake for tonight. They were going to Katherine's place tonight to celebrate Nadia's 19th birthday. Caroline had volunteered to take care of the dessert just like she always has for occasions like this.

"Just place it on the cart, Nath."

"Need help with anything else, mom?" Nathan asked as they continued walking down the aisle of flour and sugars.

"No, sweetie. We got all the ingredients we need."

Caroline couldn't help but notice the minor changes in Nathan's behavior ever since he came back from camp three days ago. This was one of them. When she asked him if he wanted to accompany her to the grocery, she expected him to say no. Or to reluctantly agree. Imagine her surprise when he immediately agreed and even looked a bit excited about it. Maybe he missed spending time with her, Caroline thought with a smile. It made her feel as if her baby wasn't growing up too fast.

"Mom? I..uhh.."

"What's wrong?" Caroline looked at her son with concern. Nathan seemed to be struggling with what to say. It looked like he was trying to tell her something. She was right, then. She knew it. That was why he's been acting so strange. Something definitely happened in camp. "Nathan. You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

Nathan suddenly gave her a weird look. "What?"

Caroline pulled him aside, away from where people were passing by. "If you're going through something, you can talk to me. Did something happen in camp?"

"What? No!" Nathan exclaimed. Then he laughed. What was happening? "I was just going to say that I'd like to help with the dessert if that's alright?"

Caroline just stared at him in shock. From all the things she expected her son to say, this was definitely not it.

"And since when did you show an interest in anything cooking related?"

Caroline saw a look cross her son's face, but it was gone before she could analyze it.

"There was this.. uh.. I signed up for a baking class at camp? Yeah.. and a cooking class as well. I..uh..Cause I.. Cause I wanted to make something for all of you when I came back I guess?"

Caroline tried to find something to say but she can't. She wanted to ask him what brought about these changes in him. But she knew better than to ask. She knew how much he disliked talking about those kinds of stuff.

"Nevermind. I don't think I'm really good actually. It was just a suggestion." Nathan said quickly and Caroline thought he sounded slightly nervous. She immediately linked her arm through his to reassure him.

"What are you talking about? You're going to help me whether you like or not." She said fondly. Then they continued walking down the aisle. "C'mon. Lets pay for this so we can go home."

Nathan was watching one of the tv series' Clay had on his shelf. It was safe to say that he was bored out of his mind. It wasn't like he could go out and play soccer. That would just ruin their cover. Well to be fair, he's only just been here for three days and was just beggining to settle into the new environment. He was invited to go to some get together later by Jake who is Clay's best friend. He told him that he didn't feel like going out tonight, still wanting to rest from camp. But to be honest, Nathan just chickened out. He wasn't sure if he could fake being Clay in front of his friends just yet. He told himself though that he would go sight seeing tomorrow. Well, discreetly though since London was supposed to be his home.

He was about to finish episode 7 when his phone started ringing.

He checked who was calling and felt his heart sink when he saw that is was his Aunt Rebekah. She was also another person that Nathan kind of wanted to avoid at the moment. "Aunt Rebekah! Hi."

"_Hows the cake so far, love? Need help with anything?"_

Cake? What's going on?

"Uhm..What cake?" Nathan asked nervously.

"_Don't tell me you forgot!" His aunt exclaimed._

Well, shit. Was there something planned for today? Nathan immediately stood up from the couch he sitting on. "I didn't forget. I was just kidding! Hold on. I'm just going to grab something." He said while running towards the kitchen, hoping his Aunt won't notice anything.

He sighed in relief when he saw "George's 4th birthday party" written in the white board.

"_Okay, dear. Can't wait to see the finished product! The one with the little blue cars icing on top that you were talking about."_

Blue cars on top of a cake? How does one even make that? He was dead. He was toast. This would be all over now. He couldn't bake to save his life.

Nathan tried for a different angle.

"Didn't Uncle Finn and Aunt Sage want to order a cake instead? What if this is a disaster? What if I forgot how to bake during camp?"

His aunt laughed, oblivious to his internal struggle. "_Love, it isn't you to be nervous about baking! Plus, they didn't want to order a cake. They asked you to do it. And you said so yourself remember? That they didn't even have to ask cause you'd still do it since you love our little George so much."_

Nathan felt like he was about to explode. And all just because of a cake. He knew he was being ridiculous but ever since he's stepped foot in London he has been on edge. It was like he felt pressured for some reason he didn't know. And now he felt like something was being expected of him and he couldn't deliver. And what's up with Clay? Why did he have to agree? Didn't he have other things to do himself?

He took a deep breath and tried to relax. He could do this. It's just baking. How hard could it be? Its not like this is new to him or anything. His mom bakes all the time. He got this.

"Okay. Right. You're right. I'm going to start baking now." Nathan tried to keep his voice light. They said their goodbyes and see you laters. He hung up and decided to call his brother. It was probably around 11 am in Mystic Falls now. Good, cause he's going to need his help.

"_Hey!" _Clay answered cheerfully and Nathan kinda wanted to smack him.

"I'm blaming you and your volunteering self for putting me in this predicament."

"_What's going on?"_

"Apparently, I'm supposed to be baking the cake for our cousin's birthday. I can't even cook an egg, man. What am I supposed to do?"

"_Calm down. Go to my room, I have small notebook on my study desk with the recipe for George's birthday cake. Just follow the steps. It not that difficult."_

"No, you don't understand. I can't do this." Nathan was pacing back and forth. "They're going to find out."

"_They won't! Oh I got an idea. Let's talk on Skype, yeah? I'll talk you through it. Just..I can't talk to you too long. I just got back from the grocery and I'm going to help mum bake as well."_

"Did you not hear a word I was saying? I can't bake! You'll blow our cover!"

"_Relax, mate! I told mum that I took some classes back at camp. Its no big." _

Nathan pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, I'll just grab the laptop."

"What in the world are you wearing?!" Nathan stared in disbelief as his brother appeared on the screen.

Clay looked down at himself. _"Oh, this?" _

"Yes. That." His brother tugged at the collar of the short sleeved button down he was wearing. It was even buttoned all the way up his neck. There was no way Nathan would be caught wearing that in public. He was even wearing one of those black rimmed glasses. Where did he even _find _that?

"_I found this at the back of your closet."_

"Yes. Where its supposed to stay. Go change."

Clay rolled his eyes and muttered a "be right back."

After a few minutes, he came back wearing one of Nathan's band shirts and jeans. _"Happy?"_

_30 minutes later.._

"_Then slowly fold in the sugar mixture." _

"What? Fold in?" Fold? Nathan looked at the laptop screen in front of him with his brother's patient face waiting for him to do the next step. The kitchen was a mess. He's been spilling things here and there but so far, everything looks right. Maybe.

"_Yeh.. in the egg batter."_

"Okay.." Nathan shrugged then dumped the sugar mixture in the bowl.

"_Well..ok that works too. Just be sure to mix it well."_

Nathan grabbed the electric mixer and started mixing.

"_Okay let me see." _ Nathan showed Clay the mixture.

Clay nodded, looking satisfied. _"Good! Now all you gotta do it pour it in the cake pan, then place it inside the oven."_

Ok. Nathan could do that. "Okay, thanks Clay."

"_No problem. Gotta go now. Bye!" _

He clicked off, leaving Nathan to fend for himself. He immediately felt less confident now that he didn't have his brother to guide him.

Nathan proceeded to place the cake mixture in the cake pan and placed it in the preheated oven. That wasn't so hard, was it?

_40 minutes later.._

It was a disaster. The cake tasted like cardboard and the blue icing cars looked like demented creatures that even Nathan himself didn't want to look at it, let alone eat it. He didn't know where he went wrong. He followed all the instructions carefully. It's safe to say that he was this close to panicking. And all for a cake, he thought darkly.

He looked around the kitchen, hoping for a solution to pop out of nowhere. Then he eyed his laptop.

Smirking, he searched for the nearest pastry shop and dialed the number.

"Hello? Do you accept rushed customized birthday cakes? Sorry for the short notice, its just that this is sort of an emergency. Uhh.. chocolate and cheesecake filling. Okay, so I'll just email you the photo then? Okay. To be picked up in two hours, got it. Great! Thanks."

(CAROLINE'S POV)

"These red velvet cupcakes are amazing, Care!" Katherine exclaimed after taking a bite. They were at Katherine's, celebrating her goddaughter Nadia's 19th birthday. It was a huge party. But knowing Katherine, she shouldn't really have expected any less. She smiled fondly at the group of teenagers laughing by the pool, sipping mango daquiris (They can drink, but only under my supervision, Katherine reasoned).

"Oh, Nathan made them." Caroline said proudly. They had worked on various pastries all afternoon and Caroline was really surprised at how much he learned during camp. It was like he suddenly became an expert on baking.

Katherine looked at her in shock. "Are we talking the same Nathan who turned my kitchen into a mess when he attempted to make pancakes, just, I don't know, two months ago?"

Caroline laughed, remembering that morning and walking into what looked like someone poured a huge bag of flour all over the kitchen. "He learned it all in camp. I don't know Kath, it's like there are these changes in him. And not only about this. Yesterday, I caught him organizing the book shelf in the library. And yesterday, Matthew came over and invited Nathan to play soccer with them and he refused."

"Don't question it anymore. As long as he doesn't do drugs, he's fine. And maybe he's still feeling tired from camp, you know?"

Caroline nodded, but she couldn't help but feel guilty. She knew that she was a bit hard on Nathan before he left for camp. But who could blame her? Her son was just suspended from school for drinking and trespassing. She did not raise her son to act so rebelliously. She didn't want him to grow up not knowing what was right from wrong. But then, she felt bad because what if Nathan thought that he had to change who his interests and who he was? Caroline resolved to talk to him tomorrow, then. Even if she knew that her son didn't like talking about these things, she had to let him know that she didn't want to change a single thing about who he was.

(NATHAN'S POV)

"The cake looks amazing, Clay! Thank you so much for doing this." Sage said as she gushed over the cake that was displayed on the table by the presents. It actually did look good. It was worth all the trouble baking.. or rather, buying it.

Not that anyone would know.

"It's nothing, Aunt Sage." Nathan said, already thinking of a way on how to change the subject. "Where's George?"

"He's with Rebekah, trying on the new jacket she bought for him making sure if it fits." His father said.

Now that he thought about it, he hasn't met his cousin yet. He wasn't there during his surprise homecoming party. Well, he's about to meet him now. Not that he was nervous or anything. Clay told him that they were pretty close.

"Oh, there he is!" Sage said while walking over to where George was, holding Rebekah's hand as they entered the kitchen.

"George! Clay's here! Didn't you say that you missed him?" Rebekah said as she was guiding George towards Nathan's direction.

Nathan smiled down at the kid in front of him, ready to hug him or whatever. But to his surprise, George wouldn't go near him. He hid behind his mother.

Nathan laughed nervously and bent down to match George's height. "Hey there buddy, look what I got you!" He retrieved the gift he bought a while ago on the way home after picking up the cake. It was a little stuffed toy car.

Sage gently ushered George towards Nathan but to almost everyone's surprise, he started wailing and crying. "No! Not Clay!" Then he ran away.

"I'm so sorry." Sage said before quickly running after her 4 year old son.

Nathan spied a look at everyone, trying to gauge their reactions but everyone seemed to understand the fact that kids get tantrums sometimes.

"Maybe he's just sleepy." Nathan shrugged, then, desperately wanting to leave the kitchen, grabbed a glass of orange juice from the table and muttered a short "excuse me".

The last thing he saw before closing the door was his Aunt Rebekah looking at him more intently than usual. He shrugged it off and headed towards the gardens. He needed air. Lots of it.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and follows! Here's the next chapter! :)

(KLAUS' POV)

_May, 1999_

_Klaus couldn't remember the last time he was this scared. When he heard Clay cry through the baby monitor, he ran the fastest he could to get to his son's room. He didn't even know that he was capable of running that fast. A million or so thoughts ran through his head during the short distance from his room to Clay's nursery. He wouldn't be able to forgive himself if something bad happened to his son._

_Upon entering his son's room, he almost dropped to his knees in relief when he saw his son just standing up in his crib. He just woke up then and was probably hungry._

_What he didn't expect though was his heart breaking into pieces when he heard who Clay was calling out for._

"_MAMA!" Clay more or less wailed while crying uncontrollably which caused Klaus to shake out of his reverie and march towards his son's crib to pick up his one year old._

"_Ssh.. Ssh.. Daddy's here." Klaus hugged Clay close to his chest and rocked him back and forth, trying to make the baby calm down. _

"_Mama.." _

_Klaus felt a tear roll down his cheek. Clay was looking for Caroline, but she was in Mystic Falls. Clay had to get used to not having his mom around. It was unfair, but that was their agreement. Klaus wondered if Nathan looked for him too. A part of him would never forgive himself for letting go of his other son. There would always be that missing piece in his life. But he resolved not to take it out on anyone, especially on Clay. He looked down at his son who was still crying. There were times when feelings of insecurity and self doubt washed over him. What if he couldn't do this? What if Clay was better off with Caroline? He kissed Clay's forehead and promised to himself that he would do everything he could to make Clay's life complete and happy. That he'd be the best father he himself never had growing up. Clay won't grow up feeling that there was something missing in his life. _

"_Dad's here, son. Ssh now. Everything's going to be alright." He continued to pat Clay's back until his loud wails turned into quiet whimpers._

_Klaus smiled softly at the sight of Clay finally sleeping peacefully in his arms. It still surprised him, that he was capable of loving someone this much. His heart felt like bursting with love and pride everytime he saw his son. He carefully placed Clay back into his crib. Not ready to leave Clay alone quite yet, Klaus lay down on the couch beside the dresser. It was only the next morning when he realized that he fell asleep there when his brother Kol was nudging him awake._

_After that night, Klaus had Clay's crib moved into his room for the time being._

"Dad?"

"Yes?" Klaus jumped in surprise upon hearing his son's voice, officially putting a halt to his trip down memory lane. It was a Sunday, and that meant time for family. Usually, they'd spend it with the rest of the extended family but for today Klaus decided that it would be a father-son bonding type of day. He had missed Clay while his son was away at camp. So they were going to stop by their favorite art shop.

"Are we going now?" Clay was hovering by the doorway, looking hesitant to enter his study room in which Klaus found a bit peculiar. Clay usually just barges in without so much as a warning. If he was being honest, Clay's not been acting himself ever since he arrived home at camp and it was making Klaus wonder if something bad had happened. There was really something different with the Clay who was standing by his doorway. He just couldn't quite put a finger on what exactly that change is. But then again, Klaus knew that his son would tell him if something did happen. Clay was not one to hide what he feels, always an open book.

_Very much like someone else, _Klaus thought to himself. But he immediately shook away those thoughts, not wanting to dwell on them.

"Yes. Let me just grab my keys."

"Okay." Clay said then he quickly left the room.

Huh. Klaus frowned. Where was his talkative son? He felt like Clay was being somewhat distant to him, they barely had a proper conversation ever since he returned. Well, Klaus resolved to get to the bottom of this..of whatever's happening with Clay.

(CLAY'S POV)

Clay was having a brilliant afternoon. He found the perfect bookstore that offered both new and used books. He even found some that he's been having a hard time looking for back home. He spent two hours in the bookstore and ended up buying six books. They weren't all for him though. One was for his mum.

Yeah, who was he kidding. He went a bit crazy in there.

He was just wandering around the shop now when he suddenly spotted a records store with a sign that read "rare finds available". It wasn't really his thing, but it was Nathan's. He walked in and decided to buy something for his brother.

He somehow found himself browsing through the folk rock section. Again, it wasn't his type of music but he knew much how Nathan liked them. Actually, his father did too. He saw a band that his he knew his dad loved and he reached out for the album when someone grabbed it the same time he did.

"Excuse me, but I found this first." The guy said arrogantly, not letting go of the album.

"But we grabbed it at the same time." Clay reasoned, not releasing the album as well. This was petty and Clay really did not have the energy to argue over a bloody CD but then the guy was acting like a right prick so he decided to argue a bit for fun.

"It's not like you listen to this stuff, anyway. Give it."

"And you just make assumptions of people without even knowing them?"

The guy didn't say anything for a moment and Clay realized that his accent might've slipped out at some point. Clay cleared his throat. "I mean..yeah, what I said."

The stranger looked distracted for a moment. "Well, I would know."

What? "Know what?"

"What if feels like to be judged."

Honestly. Clay sighed, he didn't have time for this melodramatic talk. "Don't we all?"

The guy shook his head. "What I mean to say is, you just seem like the type of dude that listens to something else, that's all."

And what type of _dude_ is that?

"Well, my shirt begs to differ." Clay shot back and only realized how stupid he sounded. Well. What's done is done. And yes, he was wearing yet another band shirt of Nathan's named The Cure. He's heard of them, obviously, he doesn't live under a rock.

"Name two albums, then."

"Seriously, are we five now? Well, there's..you know the bit with the ehm.. Love song..or other."

The guy looked like he was trying not to laugh. It was only then that Clay noticed his short messy dark hair, pale skin and midnight blue eyes. He was not unfortunate looking, Clay admitted reluctantly. Twat.

"I was right, then. So, shall I redirect you to the pop section?"

"Just because you seem to have a liking for that kind of music, that does not give you the right to shit on other people's choice of music. Music is music. Where's the right of choose? Where's the freedom?"

He was almost going to add, 'Where is the love?' when the guy started laughing.

Clay narrowed his eyes. "What?"

"Sorry, sorry. It's just. Nevermind." The guy covered his mouth and tried to school his features. "And what's with your accent? Why does it keep changing?"

Clay seriously couldn't care less now if his accent was showing. "Oh, fuck off."

"So, are you going to let go or not?" Blue eyes asked. It was only then that Clay noticed that they were both still holding on to the album.

Clay eyed the shelf, it was the only album left on the shelf. But Clay's had enough of this. This guy was ruining his good mood. "Here, you can have it."

"On second thought, here. I could always look for something else." The guy held the album out to Clay.

Clay shook his head. "No its okay, I insist. You can have it." He started to walk away.

"No, I insist." The stranger took ahold of his right hand and placed it there.

"I said it's alright, yeah? I'll just look for something else." Clay gave it back immediately.

"Nope, don't want it." Blue eyes gave it back.

"Its fine."

"No, here."

What the hell is happening? They were acting like children. Clay was about to burst in frustration.

Blue eyes sighed, "Fine."

"Fine." Clay said back. Because, well.

"Fine." The guy shrugged again.

Clay nodded once. "Fine."

"Fine." Blue eyes was smirking now.

"Perhaps fine will be our always, I guess." Clay blurted out without thinking, then his eyes widened immediately. The fuck was he saying. He was quoting books now. He should leave. "Bye."

He turned around and started walking briskly out the shop.

(NATHAN'S POV)

So far, Nathan was enjoying his day with his dad even though they were doing things that Clay enjoyed. Such as going to the art shop. That was a challenge. Nathan had to pretend to have an extensive knowledge on all things art. It was a good thing he had it covered, he did his research. Let it be known that Nathan Forbes was not one to tackle on something unprepared. It wasn't all that boring as he thought it would be though. But then afterwards, his dad decided that they go kart racing. Now that was more in sync with Nathan's interests.

They were walking by the shops now when Nathan spotted a music store. It's been a while since he's been into one.

He might've subconsiously stopped because his dad suddenly stopped walking as well.

"Clay?"

"Uh..Dad? Can we go in here for bit?"

Klaus looked surprised for a moment before he nodded. Nathan grinned as they both entered the shop.

"Woah! I've been looking all over for these." Nathan exclaimed as he crossed to room over to the vinyl records on display. There were of different bands that he always loved listening to growing up.

"Son, I never knew you were interested in these kinds of music." Klaus grinned, also browing some of the records.

Nathan froze. "Uh..Yeah, there was this guy at camp who introduced me to the genre." He turned away from his dad and made a face. Shit. He should really be careful. He had too much slip ups already and he's only been there for a week.

"You know, I've always loved this band." Klaus said, pulling out an LP.

"The Cure?" It was their 1989 album.

"Yes." Klaus nodded, "Saw them live once."

"Are you serious? I love that ba-" Then Nathan stopped himself. "I mean, they're good. Based on what I've heard."

His dad continued to talk about the various bands he's seen live and what he wanted to see and Nathan had to stop himself from talking animatedly about it. He didn't know he and his dad shared an interest in rock music.

"I used to play these for you when you were still a baby. Well, this and I also read you a lot of poetry."

Nathan tried to smile, but he couldn't help but feel a bit bitter. They were having so much fun so far that Nathan almost forgot that he was acting as Clay. For a moment it was like he was bonding with his father as Nathan, something that he never had the chance to do before this day.

He wasn't able to stop himself before blurting out, "Do you ever wish that you had more children? If..if you and mum never separated."

His question obviously caught his father off guard, causing him to drop the album he was holding. Nathan saw a look of sadness crossed his fathers features before he immediately schooled them back to normal.

He didn't say anything for a moment so Nathan immediately added, "Just..just wondering, is all. You don't have to answer, dad. Sorry."

That seemed to shake Klaus out of his reverie. "No, no. It's okay to ask questions, son. Never hesitate. It's just that it's been a while since you've asked me questions about your mum, that's all. To answer your question.. No, I don't wish to have anymore children, if given the choice. Having you as my son is the best thing that's ever happened to me." It looked like it took a lot from his dad to say those things.

"So." His father said brightly, obviously trying to change the subject. He grabbed a couple of CDs. "Let's check these out."

Nathan nodded, trying to swallow the hurt he was unintentionally feeling. Damn it, why did he have to ask such a stupid question? What did he expect, it wasn't as if his dad could talk about him right? His other son. Did his dad even wonder that was happening with him? He shrugged off the feeling and told himself to man up. He didn't do emotional talks and he wasn't about to start anytime soon.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: ***Hides behind a pillow* I'm extremely sorry for not updating this story for a really long time. I lost inspiration again and I couldn't find the motivation. I'm horrible. I'm truly sorry. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. :)

**Important: I reuploaded the previous chapters. I just made some revisions. Nothing that changes the story much for some chapters. But I think its best to reread the first and third chapters since I added quite a lot of stuff in Caroline's internal monologues there that explains things about the divorce. And also in the second chapter, I added a scene where in Clay comes out to his father. And instead of residing in New York, I thought that it would make more sense for Caroline to live in Mystic Falls instead in this fic. **

(CAROLINE'S POV)

"Wow! What's the occasion?" Nathan asked with a surprised smile as he eyed all the food on the table.

It was one of those rare times when Caroline had an afternoon off from work and Nathan was out so she decided to cook something special for dinner.

"Think of it as a late welcome home dinner." Caroline said and went to pinch Nathan's cheek even when she knew how much he hated it.

She expected Nathan to slap her hand away but to her surprise not only did Nathan laugh but he then went to hug her like it was the most normal thing in the world. Which was not normal because the Nathan she knew did not like physical contact the moment he reached the age of thirteen.

"Can't wait to try all this!" Nathan exclaimed then walked around to sit on his chair.

Huh. Where was her moody son? Not that Nathan was always moody. He had his moments but this..This was different. Nathan just seemed more giddy and cheerful.

Then it hit her. Maybe he meet someone at summer camp? Was he.. in love? Is that why he's been acting so different?

Then Caroline remembered that her son would talk to her when he was ready. It wasn't as if he hid things from her. He would tell her whatever it was that was going on with him in his own time. With a nod, Caroline sat on her side of the table.

"So how was your day?"

Nathan took a bite of salad and his eyes lit up. "Oh! I went to this book store. I got you a book too. And something really funny happened at the-" Then he stopped.

"Nath?"

A look of panic crossed his features before he schooled it back to normal. "I mean..Nothing."

It took almost all of Caroline's will not to ask her son straight up what was up. She did not want to push if her son wasn't ready to share anything with her. There were instances before where in she would prod at him to tell her what was up and she knew how well all that went. Nathan would just close off and put his walls up even more. All she needed to do was to make sure that he knew that she was there to listen.

She was just about to tell Nathan as much when she heard him wheezing. "Nath!" She stood up and went over to his side. "Nathan?"

"Its..Okay.. I'm just-" It was like he was having trouble breathing and to Caroline's utter horror, his lips were starting to swell.

Without another word she immediately ran to the kitchen to grab an antihistamine tablet. She ran back to Nathan and saw that small hives were starting to form on his arms. "Here. Drink this. Then I'm taking you to the emergency room."

Caroline's heart was beating fast and her eyes were starting to water.

"Its okay mom, I'm fine. I'll just go up to my room and-"

"No its not! It's an allergic reaction, I know it is! Come on!" Caroline was already pulling Nathan with her to the front door. She grabbed her keys and willed herself to calm down before starting the car.

(KLAUS' POV)

Klaus was feeling so much more at ease than he had the past few days now that he had finally gotten to bond with his son after spending so much time apart while Clay was away at first went to their favorite art shop then in a moment of spontaneity, decided to go to the kart racing. They also visited this music store where in Clay had surprised Klaus with his sudden interest in rock music. It was a good day. Until Klaus was reminded of some things that he didn't want to think about. Clay had asked him about having more kids and..it led him to think about his other son, Nathan. He couldn't count the amount of times he wanted to catch a plane to Virginia and just see his son. The reminder always left Klaus feeling down and closed off. If it were the old him, he'd have locked himself in his room, not wanting anyone to disturb him. Or he'd have driven off somewhere far and done something he'd regret in the morning. But he was no longer that young, reckless and immature guy he once was. He now had responsibilities and to be honest, he just wasn't that kind of person anymore. He now knew that is was better to talk about his problems and that shutting the world out doesn't really help at all.

"Nik? Are you okay? You haven't heard a single thing I said, didn't you?" Rebekah nudged him. He was probably staring into space. They were currently at Finn and Sage's house since it was their turn to host Sunday dinner. He was just sporting a glass of bourbon with Rebekah at the living room while Clay and his cousins were at the entertainment room watching some movie.

"Its just..I was just thinking about Nathan, actually." Klaus answered honestly.

Rebekah gave him a look of understanding and sadness. "Nik.."

"I know, I know. It's just. Clay asked me earlier today if I wanted more kids."

Rebekah gently patted his arm. "You can always call Caroline, you know? I've been telling you this for the longest time, Nik. Its not against the law to ask about your son right?"

"But that was why we had this agreement in the first place. We took one son each so that we'd never have to see each other again."

"But what about the kids? Will they really spend their whole lives not knowing that they have a brother?"

"Clay has a million brothers and sisters. Finn and Sage are already at their fifth with little George." Klaus tried to joke but Rebekah just ignored him.

"You know that Clay still asks me sometimes what his mum's like."

That was a surprise to Klaus. Its been a while since Clay had asked him about his mother. "He does?

Rebekah nodded. "He knew that it upsets you to talk about her. And yes, he knows that it's okay to ask you stuff but.." Rebekah shrugged and continued, "you know your son. He doesn't like it when you're sad."

Klaus sighed. "I know."

"Clay has always been so kind and thoughtful. Ironic, cause it's you who raised him."

"Watch it." Klaus warned but he himself wondered that at times as well. He wondered if he was doing a good job at being a parent.

Rebekah's expression softened, seeming to notice the change in his demeanor. "You did well in raising him. Don't doubt yourself, okay?"

"Dinner's ready!" Sage suddenly announced as she entered the living room. Then she quickly left the room again to probably go to the entertainment room to announce the same thing.

"That's enough sentimental talk for today, I guess." Klaus said lightly, trying to brighten up the mood but he knew that Rebekah knew better. But she seemed to let it slide.

Rebekah smiled, albeit a bit sadly. "Come on. Let's eat."

"Food looks great!" Katie, Sage and Finn's eldest daughter, exclaimed while placing some pasta onto her plate.

"I see those lessons are going well?" Kol teased while Finn sent him a warning glare from where he was placing a bowl of salad on the table.

Sage just laughed good-naturedly and stood up. "Oh! I almost forgot about the scallops."

It had been a running joke in their family since Klaus could remember. It all started when Finn introduced her to the family and Sage said that she and Finn had decided to cook dinner instead of going to a restaurant. Needless to say, it was a disaster and they all ordered in. The next day, Finn and Sage announced that they would be taking couples cooking lessons. The have long since stopped taking lessons though and they now serve the best food in these Sunday family dinners.

"These scallops look great." Elijah piped up, when Sage had returned to place a plate of scallops on the table. Good old Elijah, always trying to keep the peace in the family.

Klaus laughed and went on to take a bite out of one of the scallops and suddenly looked up in alarm. He immediately turned to Clay and tensed when he saw that Clay had some scallops on his plate as well.

He was about to berate Clay for not paying closer attention to his food when Sage suddenly went to Clay's side.

"Oh, no! These are yours, Clay." Sage said and placed a small plate of scallops near his plate. "Without peanut sauce."

"But.. the peanut sauce is fine." Clay said, looking confused.

"Very funny, Clay." Rebekah shook her head fondly.

"No, really." Clay insisted and was about to take a bite out of one of the scallops.

Klaus immediately yanked the fork out of Clay's hand which resulted to him knocking the glass of water in front of him.

"Dad!" Clay exclaimed and stood up, the water soaking his shirt.

"Niklaus!" Elijah, who was seated beside him, looked at him in shock.

Klaus pinched the bridge of his nose. "That wasn't funny. You know you're allergic to peanuts."

Clay suddenly looked like a deer in the headlights. Then, like a complete 180, he laughed. "I was just kidding, dad. Obviously I wasn't going to eat it."

"You can borrow one of Kyle's shirts. Kyle, go up and fetch a clean shirt for Clay, please?" Sage asked her son who nodded and got up from his seat.

"I'll go too." Clay stood up as well and dashed out of the room.

When everyone went back to their previous conversations, Klaus sighed and excused himself. He was probably being overly paranoid again. But who could blame him?

_June, 2002_

"_How is he?" Rebekah suddenly ran up to him, looking worried. "I left the office as soon as you called." _

_Klaus was pacing back and forth. He tried sitting still but he couldn't. His whole self was filled with fear and panic right now that he couldn't even see straight._

"_What happened, Nik?" Rebekah shook his arm to stop him from pacing._

"_We were..we were eating dinner and his lips just started swelling up. Hives started forming on his arms and he just.. He was starting to have trouble breathing and I panicked. I drove him here immediately. What did I just do? What if I didn't make it here on time? What if I-"_

"_Ssh.. Stop, Nik. You couldn't have known." Rebekah immediately pulled him into a hug and Nik couldn't stop the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes. "Ssh. Its okay, just let it out."_

"_I won't be able to forgive myself if anything happens to him, Bekah. You know that."_

"_I know." She continued to pat his back._

_Later, the doctor told them that Clay had experienced an allergic reaction to peanuts. Apparently, the food Klaus listed in their dinner had peanuts in them. He then realized that he had never given Clay anything with peanuts prior to that day. The doctor proceeded to tell them that she had already given Clay an adrenaline shot and an oxygen mask to help him breathe. He was going to be okay._

"_Daddy!" His five year old seemed to visibly brighten up at the sight of his father._

"_How are you feeling?" He patted his son's head as he went to sit down at the edge of the bed._

"_I feel sleepy. And I have little dots on my arms."_

"_That's because of the peanuts, son."_

"_Peanuts?"_

_Klaus nodded. "Icky nuts."_

_Clay laughed without worry. "Yucky nuts!"_

"_Yup. No more yucky nuts for you, mister." _

_Clay seemed to think about it, then smiled. "Okay." Like it was no big deal. Then he added, "But daddy, can I still eat ice popsies?"_

_Klaus couldn't stop the smile that was tugging from his lips even he tried. "Of course you can, son. After this, we'll get some ice popsies."_

"_Yay!" Clay then hugged his dad and Klaus tried to stop himself from crying. He almost lost his son today. He wouldn't allow that to happen to ever again._

Ever since that incident, Klaus has always been careful with everything that Clay eats. He always preferred for Clay to eat homemade food so that they wouldn't have to worry about peanuts. Because of this, they seldomly ate out but whenever they do, Klaus meticulously checked the ingredients for any sign of peanuts. He makes Clay carry his EpiPen with him at all times. They have tons of supplies at home. He is literally always prepared and always on alert so that the incident won't ever happen again. It actually happened again when Clay was thirteen. He was on a school trip. Klaus of course made sure to tell his teachers that he was allergic to peanuts but some things are just truly unavoidable and one of his classmates had brought some food with peanut as an ingredient. Clay had his EpiPen with him so nothing serious had happened. But Klaus, being the paranoid father that he is, still insisted that Clay be brought to the hospital for a check up.

So, no. No one could blame him for being overly protective parent. Not when Clay's allergic reactions were like a Russian Roullete. You never know if it would be mild or severe. For Klaus, it was just always better to be careful. He'd do everything he could to protect his son.

(CAROLINE'S POV)

"Caroline."

Caroline immediately walked towards Elena when she saw her come out of the emergency room.

"Is he okay? Can I go see him now?" Caroline didn't know how long she had been crying but the tears won't seem to stop.

Elena placed a comforting hand on Caroline's shoulder. "He's fine, Care. I gave him an epinephrene and an oxygen mask to help with his breathing. He's going to be fine."

"Oh, Thank God.. Thank God." Caroline sagged with relief. "So it was from the salad?"

"Yes. You mentioned it had roasted peanut oil dressing right?"

"But he's ate peanuts before and he's never had an allergic reaction!" Caroline exclaimed. If she knew, she'd never had given Nathan anything with peanuts.

"When was the last time he ate peanuts? Or anything with peanuts?"

Caroline had to think about it for a while. "I don't usually use peanuts when I cook. I only use it when I cook Thai or Chinese food and its been a while. Aside from today, obviously. So..I think a year? And we don't usually go to restaurants with those kinds of food as well. So yes, it's been a while."

Elena nodded as if it made sense. "Yes. Some people develop an allergic reaction to certain types of food later in life. You wouldn't have known, Care. Don't beat yourself up, okay?"

"So he's really okay now?" Caroline still wanted to make sure.

Elena hugged her. "Yes, he is." She then gave her a smile, "You can go see him now."

Caroline immediately went inside the hospital room and saw her son sitting up on the hospital bed. His face was still a bit swollen but aside from that, he seemed to be breathing fine now.

Caroline walked towards the hospital bed and pulled Nathan into a hug.

"Mom!" Nathan laughed and awkwardly patted her back. "I'm fine. Don't worry."

But Caroline was having none of it. She continued to hug her son. "I was so worried."

"Mom..Are you crying?"

"Yes!" Caroline exclaimed, half crying and half laughing. "I'm so sorry. If only I knew-"

"Mom. Stop." Nathan grabbed her hands. "You didn't know okay? And..And.. just.. No one knew. I'm sorry, too."

"But I'm your mother! It's my job to take care of you."

"Mom..Its not your fault."

"Are you really feeling better now?" Caroline was still anxious. She wouldn't be able to forgive herself if anything bad had happened to Nathan. It would kill her.

Nathan nodded. "I'm feeling a bit sleepy, and my lips are still a bit swollen. But aside from that, I'm feeling okay."

"Okay, sweetie." She said and went to fix the blankets on the bed.

"Mommy?"

Caroline felt like she was about to burst into tears yet again. Its been a long time since Nathan had last called her 'Mommy'.

"Can we go get some ice popsies on the way home?"

Caroline did burst into tears this time. She went to hug Nathan again. "Of course! We'll get you as many ice popsies as you want."

"Look at me. Who knew allergic reactions would make me act like a five year old again?" Nathan laughed, but Caroline noticed that he too was a bit teary eyed. Her heard tightened. Her son was probably feeling scared, too.

"You're going to be okay, okay? I won't anything happen to you. We'll get your prescriptions and an EpiPen. Then we'll stay away from peanuts from now on."

"And get ice popsies?"

Caroline laughed. "And get ice popsies."


End file.
